Guns N' Roses, Eric B. and Rakim and the Cure among nominees for 2012 Rock and Roll Hall of Fame inductions

View full sizeKevork DjansezianGuns N' Roses at the MTV Video Music Awards in 1992. From left are Duff McKagan, Gilby Clarke, Axl Rose, Slash and Dizzy Reed. The band has been nominated for induction into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2012.

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The hard-rocking band is among a wide-ranging slate of 15 artists that have been nominated for induction into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2012, when the pantheon will enshrine its next class here.

The 27th annual induction ceremony is booked for Saturday, April 14, at Cleveland's Public Auditorium. Leading up to the big night will be a full schedule of related festivities, starting on Thursday, April 5.

Guns N' Roses, whose hits include "Welcome to the Jungle," "Sweet Child o' Mine" and "Paradise City," were nominated in their first year of eligibility.

"It's a great honor," said guitarist Gilby Clarke, a Cleveland native who was a member of Guns N' Roses in the early '90s.

"The band deserves it," Clarke said by phone from his home in Los Angeles. "It was a long time coming."

Eric B. and Rakim, a groundbreaking hip-hop duo, were nominated in their first year of eligibility, too.

Also making their debut on the ballot are the Cure, Heart, Joan Jett and the Blackhearts, Freddie King, Rufus Featuring Chaka Khan, the Small Faces/the Faces and the Spinners. All of those acts were previously eligible.

Back in the running after failing to get enough votes in the past are the Beastie Boys, Donovan, Laura Nyro, the Red Hot Chili Peppers, Donna Summer and War.

The nominees were set to be announced today by the New York-based Rock and Roll Hall of Fame Foundation, which oversees the induction process.

View full sizeJoshua Gunter, The Plain DealerThe likes of Metallica and Run-D.M.C. were among the honorees at the 2009 Rock Hall induction ceremony in Cleveland's Public Auditorium.

Taking it to the next level

"The 2012 nominees embody the broad scope of what 'rock and roll' means," Joel Peresman, president and CEO of the foundation, said in a news release. "From vocal groups to hip-hop, from singer-songwriters to hard-rocking artists, this group represents the spirit of what we celebrate at the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame."

Artists become eligible for nomination 25 years after the release of their first recording. The hopefuls were chosen by the Rock Hall's 35-member nominating committee, whose ranks include musicians, journalists and music-industry executives.

Ballots will be sent to more than 500 voters, including previous inductees.

The 2012 inductees are expected to be announced in late November or early December. Typically, five artists make the final cut.

Tables and VIP packages for the induction ceremony are almost sold out. Individual tickets will go on sale in December.

To coincide with the inductions, the Rock Hall will unveil new exhibit space in the museum and celebrate the grand opening of the museum's library and archives on Cuyahoga Community College's Metropolitan Campus.

The prelude in April will also include the launch of a major new exhibition, a free "Concert for Cleveland," a free-admission day at the museum, a gospel concert and special educational programming, including a national broadcast of the Rock Hall's "On the Road" distance-learning series.

This will be the third induction ceremony in Cleveland.

In 2007, Rock Hall officials and city leaders announced an agreement to bring the event here every three years, starting with the 2009 ceremony, where the honorees included Metallica and Run-D.M.C. In addition to international media exposure, the festivities two years ago generated $13 million in economic impact, according to Team NEO.

"We're going to try to take it to the next level, as best we can, in terms of the overall presentation and the artists we bring in for the other events," said Terry Stewart, president and CEO of the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame and Museum.

"We're excited about it. We have a few years of experience under our belts now. Fortunately, everybody felt we did almost everything well the last go-round."

The 2012 inductions will cost between $6 million and $7 million to mount, Stewart said. He declined to reveal how much money has been raised to date.

"We've made a substantial dent," Stewart said. "As much as you can feel good about that kind of number in this kind of business environment, we feel good about it. We're sure we're going to get there."

Cleveland also hosted the inductions in 1997. The ceremony is usually held at New York's Waldorf-Astoria Hotel.

View full sizeMichael Buckner"I was a fan of the band even before I joined, so I'd love to see the original five guys play a song," says former Guns N' Rose guitarist Gilby Clarke.

Unfinished business for GN'R

If Guns N' Roses receive enough votes to get in, it could set the stage for a historic reunion -- or a train wreck of rock 'n' roll egos.

The group has been through numerous lineup changes, with frontman Axl Rose as the sole mainstay. Over the years, relations between Rose and some ex-bandmates have ranged from tense to toxic.

It's unclear which members would be enshrined if Guns N' Roses were inducted.

"I was a fan of the band even before I joined, so I'd love to see the original five guys play a song," Clarke said.

"That was always one of the great things about the band -- you never knew what to expect. . . . I'm not speaking for Axl, but I think in his eyes, everything is fine and the band is carrying on. But I think the public would like to see the people [at the inductions] who made the most popular albums.

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